Life As A Nurarihyon 2
by Marisay-chan
Summary: Sequel to 'Life As A Nurarihyon'. After defeating the Shikoku yokais, life returns back to normal. Or will it be?
1. The beginning

_Marisay-chan writing one once again! It's been quite a while. I'm ashamed that it took me this long to post a chapter…without further ado, let's get to the story!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, only the story ^.^_

_In Italics are thoughts_

**In Bold are flashbacks**

_**In Bold and Italics are thoughts in a flashback**_

_*In Italics within stars are telepathic thoughts between Rikun and Rikuo*_

_This is the sequel to 'Life As a Nurarihyon', do read that first!_

_Summary: Sequel to 'Life As A Nurarihyon'. After defeating the Shikoku yokais, life returns back to normal. Or will it be?_

_~Story starts~_

* * *

Since the ancient times, people feared yokais. Killing and scaring humans were what they were known for.

Until...the arrival of one lone yokai. That same yokai created a group of yokais, which would be known as The Night Parade of a Hundred Demons in the present, and led them as the Supreme Commander.

People named that yokai:

The master of demons, goblins and ghosts,

Nurarihyon.

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

A child rushed ahead, running about while laughing. A girl followed the child with a soft smile.

The child then ran up to the girl, smiling and tugging on her kimono. The girl indulged the child and carried the child up, patting the hair gently. The child then suddenly pointed to the flowers surrounding them, swatting the pollens released by the flowers happily while saying something.

The child did not notice the girl froze up. Not seeing the sudden appearance of an overly rusted and jagged sword in her hand.

The child only knew something was wrong when there were horrified shouts nearby and that they were suddenly thrown to the ground.

Confused and in pain, the child sniffed and sat up. Young innocent eyes were unable to comprehend the sight. Those wide eyes were only able to see the girl earlier standing in front with a sword that were stained with red paint, along with a body near her.

A slightly bigger figure rushed up towards the child, hugging the child tightly while shouting loudly.

The girl turned around.

The last thing the child could remember, were the warm and kind smile the girl gave as she reached a hand towards him and the one hugging him.

Everything went black.

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

_~A few years later~_

A mansion stood in its glory. A majestic gate entrance stood before said mansion, highlighting the ominous feel of the place.

"Where could they be-" A girl was stopped as a rope caught her ankle and hurled her upside down beside a tree. "Waaaaaaaaah!"

Her scream caught the attention of two people, who quickly rushed over.

"What's going on-Waaaah!" The two of them fell into a hole that came out of nowhere, causing their legs to tangle up. "Who did this?!"

Laughters dispelled the ominous feeling that surround the place.

"And what did we get?" A child with white-black hair poked his head over the hole, grinning childishly. "Ahhh. And we got a huge yokai, along with a weirdly-dressed one!"

Another child with dual brown hair poked his head over the hole as well, laughing heartily. "We got them, we got them!"

"Young Masters!" The two men inside the hole shouted, embarrassed at being caught in such a simple trap.

"But I was hoping to get Oyaji at least." The first child placed his hands on his hips. "Oh well, at least the trap is a success. Even if it only caught Aotabo and Kurotabo."

"Yuki-Onna too!" The second child grinned at the girl being hung upside down.

"Young Masters!" Yuki-Onna huffed in frustration, even more so when the second child had the guts to wave cheerily at her. "Let me down!"

"Get us out of here!" Aotabo and Kurotabo screamed, trying to stand up but unable to due to their legs being tangled up.

The children looked at each other, grinned and turned back towards them. Each of them pulled an eyelid down and stuck out their tongues before running away while laughing happily.

And that was how Nura Rikun, nine-years-old, and Nura Rikuo, eight-years-old, started their daily routine in the house.

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

_~At a restaurant~_

"Hahaha." An elderly man sat beside Rikun and Rikuo. "Playing pranks again, huh? As expected of my grandsons. Of course, the yokais back home are getting really lax as of late. This would serve as a good wake-up call for them."

Rikun ate his noodle with a big slurp before turning to the elderly next to him. "Hey, hey, Jiji. When are you going to hand it down to us?"

"Hm? Hand down?" The elderly, Nurarihyon, blinked at the question, holding his chin with his thumb and index finger.

"The emblem of being the Third Supreme Commander!" Rikuo piped in beside Rikun. "You said before that you would hand it down to us!"

"Hm," Nurarihyon grinned. "The two of you have the potential for sure. But of course, your father will be doing the decision. He's the one leading the clan now after all."

"Awww," The two children pouted.

"However," Nurarihyon ruffled up Rikun's hair, receiving an indignant cry. "The two of you do know that only one yokai could take the place, right?"

Rikun and Rikuo blinked and looked at each other. As one, they turned back to their grandfather, "Why?"

"Why?" Nurarihyon sweated a little, unsure how to answer in the way that they would understand. "Well, think of it as battle between power. If Rihan and I were battling to lead the clan, who do you think the clan would listen to?"

"Jiji."

"Jii-chan."

The two answered with no hesitation.

Nurarihyon laughed, "Your father would be upset to hear that the two of you have no faith in him."

"That's because Jii-chan is first, right?" Rikuo pointed a finger up. "First is first."

Rikun nodded. "Who wants to listen to Oyaji anyways?"

Nurarihyon laughed again, "That is that. And it is no surprise; I was the one who recruited them in the first place. But the power had to be handed down, one can't always be holding on to the power, it gets dull and there will always be yokais that are stronger out there. That's why your father is leading now as he had surpassed me. It makes things new and challenging too. Having two leader could cause disputes and cause the whole clan to fall apart."

The children mulled over the information.

Rikun frowned a little and looked at his grandfather, "Who will get the emblem of being the Third then?"

"That is up for your father to decide," Nurarihyon ruffled Rikun's hair again. "Only a strong yokai will get to lead the clan as the leader. Although, I will have to say that Rikun, has a greater chance of being chosen, since you have ¾ yokai blood in you while Rikuo only have ¼ of it."

Rikuo watched as Rikun fussed over his hair, scolding his grandfather for messing it up. He rubbed his chest, feeling a slight itch.

"Now, shall I show the two of you something I am capable of?"

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

"Stop bringing them to restaurants and leave without paying! I'm the one who has to apologize and explain to the shop owner! It's hard to explain how you disappeared without anyone noticing!" A man fumed, arms hidden within his sleeves.

"Where shall we go and eat next?" Nurarihyon cupped his chin, grinning at his grandsons.

"Are you ignoring me?!" Nura Rihan, son of Nurarihyon, pointed at his father in agitation.

"That was amazing!" Rikun praised. "Those people totally did not see us at all."

Rikuo nodded in agreement, "Jii-chan is amazing! We want to do that too!"

"Rikun, Rikuo," Rihan placed a hand on each of their shoulders heavily. "Please don't do any of those things, I beg of you."

"Why?"

"No way!"

An aura of defeated air appeared above Rihan as the children whined in protest.

"Did you have fun, Rikun-kun?" Nura Yamabuki stepped forward, arms surrounding her son, giving a pat on his head. Beside her, Nura Wakana did the same to the other child, stroking Rikuo's cheek.

"Un!" Rikun smiled. "Even if was only for a short while, being outside sure is fun!"

"I'm surprised you managed to bring him out," Rihan muttered to Nurarihyon. "What if someone saw him? They would recognize that he's a yokai for sure."

"Don't doubt my skills, you greenhorn," A cry escaped Rihan as Nurarihyon whacked his head. "They never noticed that there were three of us all along."

"That's why we chose Jiji instead of Oyaji." Rikun said, with Rikuo nodding beside him as they watched Nurarihyon berated Rihan. "I can't believe Oyaji would be the one to choose who would be the Third."

"Oh?" Rihan turned to him, hearing the comment. "Do you have what it takes to be the Third heir of the Nura clan, Rikun?"

"Of course!" Rikun pumped his fist. "I will definitely get stronger and bring you down, you stupid Oyaji!"

"I don't think so, you little brat," Rihan smirked and quickly shot towards his son, who was surprised by the sudden movement. The father quickly reached down and grabbed one of the ankles before Rikun could even react and held him upside down. "You can't even take one strike at me."

"Stupid Oyaji!" Rikun struggled, swinging from side to side from his position, his free leg kicking wildly in an attempt to free himself.

"A strong yokai would have freed themselves easily from this. Could you do it, Rikun?" Rihan smirked, shaking the ankle he was holding onto in a mocking way.

Something flashed in those crimson eyes.

Rihan blinked.

Suddenly, Rihan watched as Rikun moved swiftly, using his hands to hold onto his and positioned himself in a way that allowed him to aim his free leg towards Rihan's face. Reacting quickly, Rihan let go of Rikun to block the kick with his arms.

"One strike," Rikun boasted before propelling away from his father and landing on the floor with a dramatic flip.

Small yokais in the room roared upon seeing that, some of them praising Rikun for the amazing stunt.

"Ohh!" Nurarihyon was impressed.

"Oh my," Yamabuki smiled.

"Amazing!" Wakana clapped.

Rihan blinked at Rikun, who had his chest puffed out. "Heh. Not bad, not bad at all." He clapped his hands in approval.

"Of course," Rikun grinned proudly.

Within moments, all the small yokais in the room swamped over Rikun in congratulations.

Rikuo watched at the side. His small hand slowly clutched tightly at his mother's clothes.

"Hm?" Wakana looked down at her son. "What's wrong, Rikuo-kun?"

"..." Rikuo blinked, before looking up at his mother. "Rikun is amazing."

"He sure is," Wakana smiled. "He would definitely be a good leader to the clan."

Rikuo blinked again, looking back at his brother. He was smiling happily; pleased with the compliments he received from the yokais.

Once again, Rikuo tightened his grip on his mother's clothes. His chest felt really itchy.

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

"What's wrong, Rikuo? You got quiet all of a sudden," Rikun peered at him as they walked along the house yard.

Rikuo hummed, "If Rikun gets chosen to be the Third..." He tilted his head to one side in slight confusion. "What am I suppose to do next?"

"Ah? You have already given up?" Rikun quickly stepped forward to stand in front of his brother.

Rikuo made a soft sound, "Rikun...Rikun is older than me. And because I have to go to school, you spend more time with Jii-chan and Otou-san, and you learn more yokai things from them. Rikun is also very capable of fighting while I...I can't do that. Also, Rikun did have more yokai blood than me, so-"

"Who cares who had more yokai blood," Rikun tackled his brother. Both of them fell to the ground, with Rikuo squealing in surprise. Rikun then laid his head on Rikuo's chest. "And who cares about all those things! We will just do our best to get chosen. Even if I did get chosen," Rikun grinned. "I will just tell everyone that you will be leading them too. We will lead the clan as one!"

"But Jii-chan said only one of us could-"

"I don't care," Rikun cut in, getting up and hovering above his brother. "Rikuo and I will do everything together no matter what. Besides," He winked. "If I become the Third, the Nura clan will have no choice but to listen to me. And I say that Rikuo will lead the clan with me!"

The younger brother stared up at his brother and blinked. He then smiled brightly. "Un!"

Rikun cooed at the happy face of Rikuo's and proceeded to nuzzle against Rikuo, rubbing their cheeks together.

Some of the small yokais gathered around, curious at the laughter created by the two children.

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

_~One day~_

"Good morning, Young Master!" Every yokai crowded in front of Rikuo's room, greeting him enthusiastically.

"Aw, move away! I'm going to be late for school!" Rikuo pouted, navigating through the crowd and quickly rushing towards his mother to prepare for school.

At least, that was his plan.

"Rikun! Let go of my leg!"

"No! Stay and play with me, Rikuo!"

"I'm going to be late!"

"Then, I'm coming with you!" Rikun stood up, determined to follow his brother.

"You can't, Rikun-kun," Yamabuki appeared from nowhere and held the older brother away from the younger.

"Ah! No, Okaa-san!"

"Thank you, Yamabuki-Okaa-san! I will be going now!"

"Have a nice day," Yamabuki waved at him.

"Noooo! Rikuooo!"

_~Just outside~_

"I will be going!" Rikuo waved to his mother, along with the yokais seeing him off.

"He's getting bigger day after day," Yuki-Onna smiled as they waved to the fading boy.

"I'm still confused why Rikuo-sama have to go to a human school when he could have just stayed," Kurotabo placed a hand on his straw hat.

"Well, that's fine, isn't it," A neckless man appeared at the entrance gate. "It would be a good experience for him...and the other one too." They stood at the man entrance, hearing Rikun's loud protest at being separated from his brother.

"You say that now, Kubinashi," A beautiful lady by the name of Kejoro popped out behind him. "But you're just glad that those two won't be together to take your head again."

A vein popped on Kubinashi's head, remembering the incident.

**"Me, me, Rikun, pass it to me!"**

**"Get ready! Catch!" Rikun threw something at Rikuo, who caught it with a cheer.**

**Aotabo happened to walk by and noticed the two children playing. "Young Masters? What are you playing?"**

**Rikun and Rikuo looked at each other and grinned at the big yokai. "Playing ball! Want to play, Aotabo?"**

**"Sure!" Aotabo lifted his sleeves, getting ready to play.**

**"Catch!" Rikuo tossed the ball towards Aotabo.**

**The yokai caught it with ease, but paused, as something was amiss. The ball felt…hairy. Slowly, Aotabo rolled the ball around, only to come face to face with Kubinashi.**

**"ARGGHHH!"**

"Ahahaha," Kubinashi laughed for a bit. "At that moment, I almost..." A dark look crossed his face. "...Kill."

"Oi!"

"Kubinashi!"

The present yokais reprimanded him for being angry with the children, despite him having the right.

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

Rikuo pouted all the way as he rushed to the bus stop. He would have no need to rush if that brother of his did not stop him. He quickened his pace as he spotted a girl standing at the bus stop.

"Kana-chan!"

The girl looked up and spotted Rikuo running towards her just as a bus arrived. She smiled happily, before putting on a displeased look.

"You are almost late! The bus would have left without us! Luckily the bus just arrived."

"Sorry, sorry," Rikuo said sheepishly.

"Let's go," Both of them boarded the bus, which was already filled with people.

Just as he sat down, a couple of boys behind him snickered. "Here comes the yokai boy! Oi, Nura, what yokai would you be today?"

Rikuo narrowed his eyes, hands tightening.

Kana frowned at those boys before sitting beside Rikuo and started talking loudly to Rikuo, ignoring the laughs behind them.

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

The sound of a gun popping off urged the boys to start running. Rikuo raced ahead of all the other boys, leaving a huge gap between them.

"Time!" A teacher nearby pressed on the stopwatch as Rikuo passed him. "13 seconds. Very good, Nura. You are getting faster."

The other boys stopped behind Rikuo, panting.

"Nura again..." One of them said.

"Damn it!" Another boy stomped his foot in frustration. "You are always in the lead. Just what is different between you and I?"

"Of course there's a difference." Rikuo smiled proudly. "My grandfather and father is the Supreme Commander of the yokais after all."

"Supreme-" One of them said.

"-Commander?" Another boy blinked.

"...Again with the yokai thing," The boys looked at each other warily.

One of them looked at Rikuo, frowning slightly. "Hey, Nura. I think that you are a really good person...but maybe you should stop with the yokai nonsense."

Rikuo frowned. "What I am saying is true! I'm not lying!" He looked at them, noticing the looks of distrust given. "It's true..."

The boys looked at each other again, before one of them spoke up.

"...Come on, we are going to be late for the next lesson."

The brown-haired boy watched them walked away, his hand clutching tightly by his side.

_Why won't they believe me?_

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

"Rikuo-kun!" Kana waved at him.

"Hm? What is it, Kana-chan?" Rikuo was packing his bag, getting ready to go home.

"Come on, I think Kiyojuji-san is calling for every-What happen to your cheek?" Kana asked once she was near Rikuo, noticing a cut on Rikuo's right cheek.

Rikuo quickly placed a hand over his cut, "It's nothing."

Kana stared for a bit and an angry frown appear. "The boys are throwing rocks at you again because you are talking about yokais, right?" She fumed a little as Rikuo averted his eyes away from her. "Those rowdy boys!"

"It's fine, Kana-chan!" Rikuo quickly picked up his bag and pushed Kana towards the exit. "So, what is it that Kiyotsugu-kun wants?"

Kana pouted, deciding to let the issue go, "He called a meeting for the whole class. Something about giving common knowledge that everyone should know."

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

"And so!" Eight-year-old Kiyotsugu gestured to the board, where tons of statistics and graphs were shown. "It was then that Onmyoji were introduced and started exterminating yokais in order to protect the humans! And there was a huge battle between them more than a hundred years ago."

The meeting was all about yokais, letting the class know how fearsome they were and the history behind them.

"But the Onmyojis came out victorious and-"

"Wait."

Kana made a worried sound, knowing only one person would protest about all this.

The whole class turned around, seeing Rikuo standing up and looking at Kiyotsugu.

"It's wrong."

Kiyotsugu blinked. And he blinked again. A feeling rose within him, a feeling he does not like. So Kiyotsugu did something to ease that feeling.

"Wrong? Why is my research wrong, yokai boy?" He gave an impressive sneer for an eight-year-old.

Rikuo did not let the name stop him, "Yokais are not like what you said! They are good people! They won't do anything to hurt-"

"All right, all right," Kiyotsugu cut him off. "The same old stuff again. Let me tell you this, I did this research because of you."

Rikuo blinked, "Me?"

"All because you keep telling everyone about yokais and yokais," Kiyotsugu ran a hand through his hair. "And so, my research proved that," Kiyotsugu leveled a glare at him. "Yokais are evil!"

Rikuo did not understand why Kiyotsugu was trying to paint his friends in a bad light. "That's not right! They are good!"

"Enough already, Nura!" Eight-year-old Jiro stepped forward, angry that Rikuo was arguing with his best friend. "Yokais are evil, so stop with all your Supreme Commander things already."

"My grandpa really is the Supreme Commander of the yokais! He wouldn't lead them to hurt people!"

"Then your grandfather's a Nurarihyon, right?"

Everyone turned to Kiyotsugu, who was staring at the board.

Rikuo blinked and smiled, "That's right! Nurarihyon! You know about him?"

"Oh, I know about him," Kiyotsugu started erasing the board. "A yokai like an old man with a hideous head. He sneaks into other people houses, taking and eating their things. A very despicable yokai Nurarihyon is. Imagine if he took your food away, you would have nothing to eat," He gave a disgusted look.

The whole class looked revolted at the description as well.

Rikuo recalled how his grandpa took him and Rikun to a restaurant and sneaked away after eating the food. "But...that's not...there must be some kind of-"

"Enough, Nura!" Eight-year-old Saori glared at him. "That was really disgusting, don't say anything about yokais anymore!" Her best friend, Natsumi, was nodding along, glaring at him.

All the children in the class starting booing at him, some frowning at him while others glared at him.

"Go away, yokai!"

A small paper ball hit Rikuo, who gasped in shock.

"But anyways," Kiyotsugu said, gaining back the attention of the class. "Yokais have ceased to exist almost hundred of years ago. We have nothing to worry about."

He continued on, not caring that Rikuo was leaving the class with a despondent look.

_That's what you get for saying I was wrong._

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

_~That evening, Nura main house~_

The house was buzzing with activity, yokais from all over the place were gathering at a specific room, and little yokais were seen preparing food and rushing the food to the room.

But it mattered little to young Rikun. He was more concerned about something else.

"What's wrong, Rikuo? Why are you so sad?" Rikun peered worriedly at his brother, kneeling beside him.

"It's...nothing. I was just thinking about something," Rikuo said, using a finger to play with a small white yokai, Sannokuchi, on his lap.

Rikun looked skeptical but did not pursue the matter, choosing to lean on Rikuo in an attempt to comfort. He also noticed the cut on his cheek, but with how sad Rikuo was, he dared not ask. At least, not yet.

"Young Masters? Are you both all right?" Kubinashi enquired, seeing the two children sitting at the hallway while everyone was so busy.

Rikun looked up at Kubinashi, not knowing what to say before looking back at his upset brother.

Kubinashi noticed the younger child was obviously upset about something. Thinking that something must have happened at that human school of his, the neckless yokai smiled gently. "Well, do cheer up. All the clan heads are here today for a Council Meeting after all."

"Council meeting?" Rikun questioned.

Kubinashi simply smiled, "Your grandfather and father are calling for the both of you," He walked away, helping with the preparation.

Rikun blinked and looked back at his brother, "Rikuo, are you really all right?"

"..." Rikuo looked at the yard, moving Sannokuchi off his lap. He smiled at Rikun.

"I'm fine, I'm just thinking too much."

"...If you say so. Let's go then. They are waiting for us."

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

The two children looked on in awe at the setting. They were sitting right in front of two rows of yokais, and the atmosphere was rather dense, giving the feel of how important this meeting was.

Rikuo looked at those yokais. All of them looked so powerful and cool. There was no way Kiyotsugu could be right about them.

Rihan, who was beside the boys, cleared his throat, bringing the attention to him. "Well, I will make this a rather short meeting."

Nurarihyon, seated at the other side of Rihan, snorted slightly.

Ignoring that, Rihan continued, "I think it's about time...that we decide the next successor of the Nura clan. The Third heir."

The yokais immediately started to mutter, each of them wondering who would be the Third heir of the Nura clan.

The two children also looked at their father, their hands automatically went to clasp each other's, feeling nervous.

"That's a good idea."

The children looked towards the voice.

A hooded yokai with razor-sharp teeth started laughing in an eerie way, smoke coming out of his mouth.

"Someone new would make all the difference, and we need a strong leader."

Rihan's amber eye looked at his direction. Nurarihyon also looked at his direction.

"After all, my clan is responsible for...guiding children to the depths."

More than two pair of eyes narrowed.

"W-What?" Rikuo muttered, thinking that he had heard wrongly. "Guiding children to the depths? Wait..."

Rikun noticed Rikuo had slackened his grip on his hand, "Rikuo?"

"Yes," Gagoze looked Rikuo. "Tons of them," He gave the eerie laugh again. "It's normal for yokais to do such things. If you want to be the Supreme Commander of the Nura clan, this sort of things should be easy."

Rikuo released his hold of Rikun's hand, feeling horrified.

Nurarihyon raised a hand to cup his chin. "You have been active, Gagoze."

Rikuo snapped his head to his grandfather, horrified that he agreed to such antics.

The room suddenly buzzed with words of how evil Gagoze was, praising his actions.

_No. No. It can't be...Why are they praising him? It's bad! Why..._

**"Yokais are evil!"**

Rikuo lowered his head.

"However, you are not fit for the job, Gagoze," Rihan said casually.

Gagoze jerked.

"I have decided," Rihan patted both of his son's head. "To let them take over."

"Two of them?!"

"Two leaders?!"

"Unheard of!"

"Of course," Rihan stopped the chattering. "I am aware that there should be only one leader. So until they are of age, Rikun and Rikuo will be the candidates of position for the Third heir."

Gagoze's claws trembled slightly.

"What's wrong, Gagoze? You looked pale," A yokai named Mokugyo asked.

"I-It's nothing."

"Rikun, Rikuo," Rihan stood in front of them, a hand of each of their shoulders. "As said, you will be the candidates for the Third heir."

_No..._

"Oyaji and I will teach you things you need to know on how to lead these yokais."

_I...don't want..._

"They will be yours to command in the future."

"NO!" Rikuo slapped off his father's hand.

The yokais gasped at the bold action.

"Rikuo?" Rikun looked at his brother, stunned.

"I don't want..." Rikuo stood up, looking at his father with tears in his eyes. "If I stay with them, I will only get hated even more at school! I am not like any of you!"

"Rikuo!" Rikun shouted, a hand rose in an attempt to stop his brother as he rushed out of the room. He glanced at his father, who nodded for him to go, and quickly rushed out to follow his brother.

"What a shame."

The leaders of the clan looked at Gagoze, who gave the eerie laugh again.

"It seems the younger Young Master still prefers to play with humans."

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

"Rikuo!" Small feet quickly padded across the hallway. "Rikuo, wait!"

Rikun grabbed a hold of Rikuo's red cloak, but was shocked when Rikuo swiped his hand away aggressively. Watery and angry brown eyes met with confused and hurt red eyes. The two of them stood in the middle of the hallway, staring at each other, trying to understand what was going on.

Rikuo broke first, tears flowing down his cheeks.

"I-I'm sorry...Rikun." He weakly reached for his brother's hand, caressing it in an attempt to apologize for his action. "I'm sorry..."

It hurt to see his brother in such distress. Rikun watched as Rikuo continued to mumble apologies, tears continued to flow down with no sign of stopping. Rikuo was clearly distraught by something, something that caused him to lash out.

And it tore at his heart to witness it.

"...What's wrong?" Rikun reached forward to hug his brother, feeling helpless. "What's wrong, Rikuo?"

Sobbing were the only answers he received.

It was at the moment Rikun knew, even though he was not aware of it at the time, as he hugged his brother tighter.

That something had changed.

* * *

**_The start of everything_**

* * *

_~One day, after school~_

Rikuo slowly walked out of his school, still feeling upset over the whole situation. He did not wish to have thoughts of his family being evil.

"It's the yokai boy."

Rikuo looked up, seeing Kiyotsugu and Jiro standing near the bus stop.

"We better hurry, otherwise he would bring his yokai friends with him!" Jiro mocked, pretending to look horrified.

Kiyotsugu looked at Rikuo, "Ah, that could be disastrous. Yokais are evil after all."

Rikuo bit his lip, feeling something boiling within him. He quickly stepped towards them and stood in front of Kiyotsugu. "You are wrong!"

The taller child narrowed his eyes.

"Oi, oi, get away from Kiyotsugu-kun, you yokai!" Jiro shouted.

"Yokais are good people! They have feelings too! They look different, but-"

An image of how Rikun hugged him when he was upset came to mind.

"But, they feel just like normal people too! That's why it's wrong!"

Teeth gritted against each other.

"Your research-"

Hands started rising up.

"-Is wrong!"

The moment he said that, Kiyotsugu shoved Rikuo away from him.

Rikuo gasped as he hit the ground, scraping his hands. Jiro stood at one side, looking shocked at what happened.

Panting lightly, Kiyotsugu clenched his hands and stood straight, "Yokais are evil."

Rikuo sat up, trying to defend his family again, "That's wron-"

"SHUT UP!" Kiyotsugu yelled. "My research is never wrong! I spend a lot of my time gathering all the information! Don't you dare say my research is wrong! If I say yokais are evil, then they are evil! Simple as that!" He glared at the child before him, something bubbling deep inside him, causing him to lash out. "My family is rich and powerful around here, I can easily bring you down! I can also make sure you would never be able to attend this school anymore! So stop talking like you know yokais or anything like that!"

Stunned and slightly fearful, Rikuo trembled and spoke up, "K-Kiyotsugu-kun-"

However, that was apparently the wrong thing to say.

"DON'T CALL ME LIKE WE ARE FRIENDS!" Kiyotsugu grabbed Rikuo's collar. "Only my friends are allowed to use my name."

He glared harshly into Rikuo's eyes.

"And I will never be friends with a yokai like you!" He shoved him back down and turned around, heading to the bus that was arriving. "Let's go, Jiro-kun."

"H-Huh? Ah, c-coming," Jiro rushed up to his best friend, all the while looking back at Rikuo, who did not moved an inch.

Rikuo then slowly got up. He patted his pants and winced when the dust stung his slightly wounded hands.

"Why are you not getting on the bus? If this one goes, you will have to wait very long for the next one."

Rikuo turned around and saw his childhood friend, "Kana-chan..."

The girl took one look at his hands and sighed. "Bullied again?"

"...It's nothing."

"Don't care about what other people say so much. All of us think differently, so you shouldn't mind what other people say so much."

"Kana-chan..." Rikuo smiled a little.

"But that aside, you should really stop saying about yokai things."

Slightly hurt, Rikuo frowned, "Why? You don't believe me too?"

"It's not about believing!" Kana shut her eyes tightly, remembering what Kiyotsugu said about yokais. "But, they are scary!"

Rikuo stared at her, "Scary...?"

"If they exist, I don't want to meet them! They are too scary!" She rushed off, quickly boarding the bus.

Rikuo stood at the school gate, watching the bus drove away without him inside.

**"That was really disgusting, don't say anything about yokais anymore!"**

Rikuo pressed a hand on his chest.

_I..._

**"But, they are scary!"**

He crouched down, gripping his chest tightly. The itchy feeling was back and was spreading to his throat.

_I won't..._

**"And I will never be friends with a yokai like you!"**

..._Talk about yokais anymore._

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

"Everyone was worried about you," A small black bird carried Rikuo in the evening sky. "Second Supreme Commander even sent some of us to look for you when you did not arrived at the usual timing. Young Master Rikun was worried sick as well."

"...Sorry. Karasu Tengu."

The named yokai looked down at the child he was carrying. It was obvious that the child was deeply distressed by something. However, it was not his place to pry into such things. He gave a slight sigh and flew on ahead, knowing one specific yokai was probably tearing the place up in search of his brother.

_~At Nura main house~_

"Ah! Young Master!"

"Karasu Tengu found him!"

There was quite a fuss as Karasu Tengu gently landed them down on the yard.

"Rikuo! You are all right!" Rikun came speeding through and hugged his brother tight.

Rikuo blinked and looked at his brother, who seemed to be utterly glad. Softening his eyes, Rikuo hugged him back just as tight, not noticing Rikun bit his lip at the returned gesture.

"There you are."

Rihan came forward, placing a hand on Rikuo's head, "We were worried, Rikuo. Where were you? What happened?"

That question prompted Rikun to let his brother go, wanting to know the answer as well.

Rikuo opened his mouth.

**"Yokais are evil!"**

He faltered.

"Rikuo?"

Rikuo looked up, gazing into caring and concerned eyes of his father and brother.

His chest itched. The young boy could feel confusion erupting within him.

**"Only a strong yokai will get to lead the clan as the leader. Although, I will have to say that Rikun, has a greater chance of being chosen, since you have ¾ yokai blood in you while Rikuo only have ¼ of it."**

His family...did not need him.

**"Go away, yokai!"**

His...friends...did not want him.

**"He would definitely be a good leader to the clan."**

Which should he choose? His family?

"**They are too scary!"**

Or his...friends?

"Did something happen in that human school of yours, Rikuo?"

Rikuo looked at his brother. Rikun had a rather intense look, focusing on Rikuo. Rihan glanced between both of them, feeling the tensed atmosphere.

Rikuo continued looking his brother, who looked back. The times when they had fun, when they played pranks together, when Rikun hugged him, comforted him, rushed towards him like a movie playing through his mind.

**"Rikuo and I will do everything together no matter what."**

Rikun clenched his hand, not liking the prolonged silence, not liking the fact that his brother seemed so far even though he was just a foot away from him. He was about to say something again when something slowly grasped his hand. Looking down, he saw another hand in his. Following the hand, he was faced with a softly smiling Rikuo.

"Sorry for worrying you. But I'm fine," There was a sad look in those brown eyes that made Rikun wanting to know what exactly was going through his younger brother's mind.

"As long as you are all right, Rikuo," Rihan patted Rikuo's head again, not really liking how his sons were acting. But, sometimes it would be better for children to figure things out on their own. "All right, everyone, back to do your things."

The rest of the yokais bowed and slowly scattered. Not before Rikuo managed to hear what Yuki-Onna said just before she went into the house.

"But it's weird. The bus that Young Master was suppose to be on did not even arrive at the stop."

_Eh?_

His chest started itching again, this time in a rather painful way.

"Come on, let's go back to-Rikuo, what's wrong?" Rikun panicked when he saw his brother clutching his chest with a rather painful expression on his face.

"Rikuo?" Rihan quickly kneeled down beside him, glowing hands over Rikuo's trying to ease whatever was hurting his son.

The commotion caused some of the lingering yokais to quickly surround the three Nurarihyons, giving worried shouts.

"Rikuo, Rikuo! What's wrong?!" Rikun cupped his brother's cheeks.

"Burning...hurts!"

"Burning?! Where?!" Rikun felt his panic rising just as Rihan increased his healing powers.

Rikuo shut his eyes, feeling the burning feeling running through him.

**"The bus that Young Master was suppose to be on did not even arrive at the stop."**

Before he could stop himself, Rikuo found himself yelling out loud.

"My friends are in danger!"

Surprised, everyone paused, staring at the panting boy.

Rikuo tugged at his father's sleeve hurriedly, "Help them, Otou-san! Hurry!"

"Now, now, Rikuo," Rihan gently patted him again, "Where's this coming from? You must be feeling more stressed than I thought. Hurry in and get some rest."

"But-!"

"That's right, Young Master," Yuki-Onna looked at him worriedly, "Did you get injured somewhere?"

"No! My friends-!"

"Maybe school was tougher than usual?" Aotabo scratched his head, "What do they teach there anyways?"

"My friends are really in danger!"

When all he received were worried smiles, Rikuo became desperate.

_Why won't they believe me?! It's just like at school!_

He looked around, searching for someone who would believe him. Upon catching a pair of crimson eyes looking at him, Rikuo latched upon his brother, who had not said anything since Rikuo's outburst.

"Please!" Rikuo pleaded with all his might, desperation clawing at him.

_Just once, just this once!_

"Save my friends!"

Even if they hated him, Rikuo did not want anything to happen to them.

"I will do anything!" Rikuo shouted in a last desperate attempt to make them believe him.

_Please believe me!_

Kurotabo tried to usher him in the house, "Young Master, you should really be heading inside-"

"Anything?"

Everyone turned to look at Rikun, who stared straight into Rikuo's eyes.

"Wait a minute, Rikun-"

"Yes! Please!" Tears started filling Rikuo's eyes, hope rising within him at the fact that his brother believed him.

"All right then, I want you to promise me something."

"Anything!"

"I want you to," Rikun slowly raised a hand, placing it on Rikuo's left cheek. "Become my mate."

Eyes went wide at the declaration.

"W-Wait, wait-!"

"M-Mate?" Rikuo widened his eyes, paying their panicking father no mind at the background.

"Yes. I want you by my side," Flashes of Rikuo swiping his hands away when he was trying to comfort him came to mind, "Always and forever, never pushing me away no matter what." The hand slowly slid down to Rikuo's chin, and lifted his head up from there.

"Can you promise me that?" Rikun whispered, slowly lowering his head, closing the distance between them.

It was just nice that a full moon was above them, the light casting a slight shadow upon Rikun, giving Rikuo a good view of those glinting crimson eyes. Feeling a weird sort of heat on his cheeks, Rikuo nodded absentmindedly, feeling shy all of a sudden.

The smile that came only increased the feeling of shyness. Wanting to look away but unable to, Rikuo parted his lips in shock as Rikun suddenly came directly inches away from his face.

"It's a promise then."

Rikun sealed the promise with a chaste kiss, only a light press upon those parted lips, almost like a butterfly landing upon his lip.

But the aftereffect that came was anything but light.

"EHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Rikuo shakily fell to the ground, hands touching his lips, as all yokais that witnessed the scene screamed.

"Well then," Rikun looked up at the moon, paying no mind to the reaction he caused. "Who shall be accompanying me on this night?"

"Wha-Are you seriously going to go out? You don't even know if his friends are really in danger?!" Rihan gaped at his elder son.

Crimson eyes glanced at him, "I believe Rikuo."

The younger brother felt his breath hitched at the confession.

"And exactly who will be accompanying yo-"

"You told us that we are candidates for the position of Third Heir, did you not?"

"I did, but-"

"Consider this a test then," Rikun stared at the remaining yokais, "I may be still young, but I am also a yokai, soon to be Third Heir! Whether you wish to follow me is up to you," With that, he turned and started to head out of the house.

"I will follow you, Young Master!" Yuki-Onna did not hesitate, quickly rushing towards Rikun.

"Me too!" Aotabo followed.

Slowly, one after another, they followed behind Rikun, not looking back once.

"I will save your friends, Rikuo," Rikun glanced back, still walking ahead.

Tears welling up his eyes, Rikuo sniffed and nodded tearfully, while Rihan was still stunned by the situation.

Smirking, Rikun disappeared into the night with the yokais following him with a blue haze.

"And there he goes." Rihan muttered, watching the direction Rikun had left. "Well, he will have to get used to leaving the house, I guess." He glanced down at his other son. "I'm surprised that you did not go with him, just what is-"

He paused.

Tears slowly ran down both cheeks.

"Rikuo...?" Rihan gently placed a hand on his son's head, worried and confused.

"Otou-san."

Rihan made a small hum.

"I..." Rikuo clenched his hands, trying to control his voice. The lump that suddenly formed in his throat made it hard to talk.

"I don't want...the emblem of the Third Heir anymore."

Golden eyes widened slightly.

"Rikun...Rikun should have it. I don't want it anymore." Rikuo looked at where his brother had left, remembering how all the yokais simply followed him without question. He clenched his teeth, trying to control his wavering voice. "I don't want it anymore."

Rihan slowly kneeled down and brought his son to a hug. He could have asked why, could have asked what happened, could have asked what was going on, could have asked for an explanation. But he did not, only bringing his son closer to him. After all, there was not much he could say.

Not with the broken expression Rikuo had.

"If that is what you want." He merely whispered.

* * *

**_The start of everything_**

* * *

_~Somewhere~_

"Not here?"

"Yes, it seems like the Young Master did not board the bus."

"Too bad," Gagoze hissed out. "I actually went through the trouble causing landslide on both entrances of the tunnel to trap the bus. It's an easy way to mask deaths after all. Wouldn't want the commanders to suspect anything. Well, it does not matter. We will get our fill feasting on these children."

"T-Those things are coming towards us!" Saori whispered in panic.

"What are they?!" Kana trembled.

"C-Could it be...yokais?!" Natsumi remembered some pictures Kiyotsugu had shown before about yokais.

"N-No way! Kiyotsugu-kun!" Jiro turned to his friend, only to find that he was knocked out. "W-What do we do?!"

Kana looked around frantically for help as the yokais continued to come closer. But it was of no use; for they are the only ones awake in the bus.

"Send them to the depths." Gagoze gave his eerie laugh.

The four of them screamed in terror as the rest of the yokais leap forward eagerly at the command.

Rocks blasting out at the side stopped them in their tracks. Everyone turned to where the blast occurred, watching as a group stepped forward slowly.

"Isn't my brother amazing?" A smirk appeared. "To be able to predict such things. Good job, Yuki-Onna. We found this place quite easily."

"Of course! I have been following the bus the first few times Young Master rode it. I am very familiar with the path it takes, the timing it reaches to each stop and the time in between as well."

"Sounds like a stalker." Rings on a staff clank against each other.

"It's for Young Master's safety!"

"Well, this is the only place where tons of humans are gathering outside. It would be easy to deduce that something is inside here." A floating head bobbed forward.

"And making a hole here is easy for me." An arm flexed upwards to show off the bicep.

"You..." Gagoze growled, eyes on the smallest figure among the group. "Why are you here?"

" 'Why?' " Rikun questioned. "I believe I should be the one asking you the question. Looking for someone?"

Gagoze gritted his teeth. "Kill him, kill them all! Leave no one alive!"

His clan members went forward, all aiming at Rikun but were all thwarted by the yokais that had followed Rikun. Seeing his clan members falling one by one, Gagoze dashed towards Rikun in a rage.

"I am the only one suitable to be the Third Heir! I will get rid of you and take my spot in the Nura clan! You and your brother will d-"

A sword to his face interrupted him.

"It was because of you."

Gagoze screamed and quickly jumped backwards, holding his injured face.

Rikun stood in front of him, twirling the sword in his hands. "He's going to give up the spot of Third Heir."

The yokais that followed Rikun looked on in surprise, wondering how Rikun came to such a conclusion.

"I won't forgive you," Rikun rushed towards Gagoze, sword poised threateningly above him. "For you are one of the reason why he did so!"

"Die, you Nurarihyons! I will be the master of all yokais!"

"Not possible."

Rikun slashed down, effectively cutting Gagoze in half, blood spurting everywhere before the body disappeared into ashes.

"I," Rikun stood straight, slowly sheathing his sword. "Will be the master of all yokais, as Third Heir. I will one day walk the streets, with my own-no," Rikun glanced back at the rest. "With our Night Parade. I swear upon my pride as a Nurarihyon. Remember this." He sheathed his sword with a sharp clink.

The four children, along with a groggily awoke Kiyotsugu, watched in awe as the rest of Gagoze's clan were exterminated.

"A-Amazing." Jiro breathed out

"Yokais...really exist." Kana said, covering her mouth.

"The explosion was somewhere he-Ah. There they are!" A man with a flashlight on his head was standing at the hole made by Aotabo. "Oi! Over here! Are you children all right?" The man rushed forward, gently picking them out of the bus through the broken windows.

"Y-Yes." Kana answered for all of them.

"Thank goodness. We thought we wouldn't make it in time. You were all trapped in here for quite a while." The man smiled and pushed them towards the paramedics rushing to the site. "Go on now, we will make sure to get you back to your parents soon." He then went off to help those still trapped in the bus.

"But still," The children heard one of the paramedics spoke up. "Why is there an explosion here?"

As one, the children looked around the place, only to find that the yokais that saved them were no longer around.

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

_~Later, during a Council Meeting~_

"Thank you for playing along, everyone." Rihan nodded towards the clan heads. "It sure was hard trying to get him out in the open."

"But, First Supreme Commander, Second Supreme Commander," Karasu Tengu tilted his head. "How did you know that Gagoze was responsible for the missing children happening lately?"

Nurarihyon snorted, "He's always been blood-thirsty and it was getting worse as time goes on. That's why we needed everyone to make him think that what he did was right, since we have no prove. And Rihan went over the top by announcing the decision for the Third Heir."

"Well, at least we finally caught the perpetrator." Mokugyo nodded in approval. "It was a good idea."

"..." Rihan lowered his head, remembering what had occurred with Rikuo. "Ah. It was a good idea."

Nurarihyon noticed the change in his son and glanced at him.

Rihan took no notice and merely took a sip of his cup.

"...At a price."

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

_~Present~_

"Third Heir, Young Master. May I have a moment of your time please?"

"Hm?" Rikun and Rikuo blinked at Karasu Tengu, who was gesturing them to the yard.

"Wear this, Third Heir, Young Master. Does everybody have one? All right, one, two and-!"

Together as one, all the yokais within the vicinity posed and donned on a blue cloak with the word 'Fear' on it, showing it off.

"What is this?!" Rikuo squeaked out, embarrassed at the display and the way all of them showed off the cloak.

Rikun was blinking, examining the cloak on his back with slight interest.

"Third Heir, Young Master. To my knowledge, you wished to create your own Night Parade, am I correct?" Karasu Tengu asked the two, to which they nodded in confirmation. "As you can see, lots of yokais, including some allied clans, stayed here a lot. This cloak here is to distinguish who here is under your command as your Night Parade is still quite new. Consider it a gift from us." He gestured towards Kejoro and Yuki-Onna, now known as Tsurara, the ones who helped made the cloak.

"It was supposed to be worn only for those who had exchanged Sakazuki with the both of you. But," Karasu Tengu glanced at the little yokais near them, admiring their own cloaks. "Things got a little out of hand."

"Well, its fine, isn't it?" Kubinashi smiled, wearing his own cloak proudly. "At least it showed a strong bond between us."

"Un!" Kurotabo and Aotabo wore theirs confidently.

"...It feels slightly embarrassing though." Rikuo sighed, but continued to wear the cloak. It was handmade after all.

"Hmm. Not bad at all." Rikun smirked. "I like it. Karasu Tengu, give me three more of this cloak."

"Hm? I'm sure I have given it to the ones who had exchanged Sakazuki with you?"

"They have not exchanged Sakazuki with us, but I want them to have it."

"Who are you giving it to, Rikun?"

"To- ah, nice timing. Gyuki-Jiji, come here for a second, would you?"

_~Somewhere near a tree~_

"Look at them being so cocky." Gozumaru sneered, leaning against a branch. "What idiots."

"It looks cool though," Mezumaru stared at the cloaks longingly.

"The Gyuki clan would never do something as embarrassing as this and-" Gozumaru paused as Gyuki slowly walked towards them. "Gyuki-sama...what are you holding?!"

Gyuki said nothing, his hands holding onto the cloaks Rikun had given him.

"Why are you looking at us while holding that?!"

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

_~Night~_

"A yokai at a warrior mansion?" Rikuo said, holding his phone, which was given by Kiyotsugu, close to his ear.

_~With Kiyotsugu~_

"That's right, Nura-kun!" Kiyotsugu smiled, beaming at the letter he held in his hand. "I will tell all of you more tomorrow. Be prepared for another yokai adventure!"

"_Haha. Sure, Kiyojuji-san._"

Kiyotsugu's smile faltered slightly.

"_I will see you tomorrow then._"

Knowing he was about to hang up, Kiyotsugu spoke without thinking, "Nura-kun!"

"_Hm?_"

"I..." Kiyotsugu opened his mouth, but end up closing them again. "...Will see you tomorrow!"

"..._Sure, Kiyojuji-san. Good night._"

Kiyotsugu listened to the dial tone after Rikuo had hung up, before flipping his phone shut and placing it on his desk. As he did so, he caught sight of the research papers he did when he was young.

It was titled, 'Why yokais are evil' at the top.

The boy stared at the papers, giving a rather uncharacteristic blank look.

**"S-So," Eight-year-old Kiyotsugu fidgeted, very uncomfortable with the situation. "I guess what I want to say is, is that, um..."**

**An equally awkward Rikuo stood in front of him, unsure of what was going on.**

**Kiyotsugu clenched his hands and took a deep breath. He was the proud son of the Kiyojuji family! His father always taught him to own up to his mistakes no matter what.**

**But it was hard. He was not used to being wrong.**

**"Is that..." Kiyotsugu puffed out his cheeks, deciding to give up on being sorry. "Yokais are very real! Did you hear about the bus incident? And-" **

**He rambled on and on for some reason. Maybe it was due the awkwardness? Maybe it was because he did not want to apologize? Maybe it was because of the blank look Rikuo was giving?**

**But even as an eight-year-old, Kiyotsugu was a very bright child. **

**And he knew.**

**_It was because-_**

**He stopped talking when Rikuo laughed a little. Kiyotsugu smiled a little as well.**

**"You are being weird," Rikuo smiled. "Yokais don't exist."**

**The smile froze.**

**"We are going to be late for class. Let's go!" Rikuo hold on to his bag strap and walked on.**

**Kiyotsugu watched as Rikuo walked further away. As Rikuo turned back and called out to him, Kiyotsugu realized something very important at a young age.**

**Words...can be very evil as well.**

**"Come on, Kiyojuji-san!"**

Kiyotsugu stood silently by his desk.

_It was because..._

He bowed his head, hands clenching hard by his side.

_~With Rikuo~_

"Hmm." Rikuo looked at his phone questionably.

"What's wrong?" Rikun asked as the both of them flew through the sky on Hebi Nyuro, a snake-like yokai.

"No. It's nothing." Rikuo kept the phone. "So...a yokai at a mansion?"

"Seems interesting." Rikun smirked, leaning his chin on his brother's shoulder. "Shall we see if they have what it takes to be part of our Night Parade?"

"Un!"

* * *

_**The start of everything**_

* * *

Since the ancient times, people feared yokais. Killing and scaring humans were what they were known for.

Until...the arrival of one lone yokai. That same yokai created a group of yokais, which would be known as The Night Parade of a Hundred Demons in the present, and led them as the Supreme Commander.

And now, with a new generation, with a new Supreme Commander, and a newly formed Night Parade:

13-year-old Nura Rikun, Third Heir of the Nura clan, and 12-year-old Nura Rikuo, Young Master of the Nura clan,

Are ready to show world just what they are capable of.

~To Be Continued~

* * *

_And so it all begins! Rikuo had a really hard time during his childhood *Cries* but it explains a lot about 'Life as a Nurarihyon' chapter 1 doesn't it?_

_Things to note(if you have not read the prequel):_

_Jiji - Gramps. Informal, almost rude, way of calling grandfather or old man_

_Jii-chan - Informal way of calling one's grandfather_

_Oyaji - Informal, almost rude, way of calling father_

_Okaa-san - Informal way of calling one's mother_

_Otou-san - Informal way of calling one's father_

_-chan - used between close friend, mainly on females._

_-kun - used, to refer to males. It can also be used on females of junior states by a person of senior status._

_-san - A title of respect between equals of all ages._

_Yokai - __A class of supernatural monster in Japanese folklore_

_Sakazuki - A ritual of exchanging sake cup to pledge loyalty._

**_Omake:_**

**_~While flying through the sky~_**

**"…_I heard of a human tradition. Something about being high and kissing?" A hand slowly wrapped itself around Rikuo's waist._**

**"_Wha-Where did you even hear this kind of things?!" Rikuo quickly stopped the hand from going lower._**

**"_Shall we try?"_**

**"_Stay-Stay away from me, stupid Rikun! We are in the middle of the sky!"_**

**_Hebi Nyuro could be seen sweatdropping as it struggled to maintain the two moving yokais on his back._**

_That's all folks, do review this chapter and tell me what you think! (Rikun was speaking about a ferris wheel if you do not know)_


	2. A promise

_Marisay-chan writing here~ Are all of you doing fine? Please be careful when going out and wear mask at all times. We will get through this difficult time! Stay safe!_

_To __**monamonalisa17**__: You are very welcome! Haha yes, it will be different since their father is around. Thank _you_ for following this story thus far. I hope you will continue to enjoy it *Smiles*_

_To __**Nightstar09**__: Thank you for following the story this far! Did it really improve? I sure hope so. Do feel free to criticize it. I will continue to improve it with any comments given!_

_To 'Guest': I read it after seeing your review. Slightly possessive. I guess nobody would know as they shared the same body and appear in different ones in mind _

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, only the story ^.^_

_In Italics are thoughts_

**In Bold are flashbacks**

_**In Bold and Italics are thoughts in a flashback**_

_*In Italics with stars are telepathic thoughts between Rikun and Rikuo*_

_~Story Starts~_

* * *

Hands clenched tightly onto the sheets. Breathing accelerated at an alarming rate. Soft gasping sounds escaped from trembling lips as eyes went wide with terrifying fear.

A tall figure loomed over, standing near the top of the futon.

All could be seen, were the flowing amount of talisman on the figure's face, before everything went black.

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

"Oof!" A body fell to the ground upon knocking onto something.

A sloppy mess of ice cream slowly slid down a shirt, dripping onto the ground.

"Watch where you are going, you brat!" The something turned out to be a man. "I just bought this shirt!"

"Big brother's shirt is all dirty now!" His underlings, apparently, held their faces in horror. "It was so expensive too!"

"Exactly how are you going to pay for this, brat?" The big brother crushed his ice cream in his fist. "Who are you anyways? I have never seen you around here. Don't you know that this place belongs to us?"

"My glasses..." The knocked down body picked the glasses off the ground and stood up while dusting himself.

Rikuo put on his glasses and looked at the mess. "Uh, I'm really sorry about this." He rubbed the back of his head in slight confusion.

_He was the one who knocked me down though..._

_*...*_

"Didn't you hear my question?" Big brother placed himself right in front of Rikuo with a rather smug look. "What are you doing in my territory?"

"Hunting yokais."

A short silence came before the gang of men laughed at the answer.

"H-Hunting yokais, he said!"

"I can't believe this!"

"What an idiot!"

"Don't be stupid!" Big brother poked his finger onto Rikuo's chest. "There are no such things as yokais. Take your foolish imaginations and leave this town now."

Rikuo merely blinked and tilted his head. "I see."

Someone smirked at a distance.

"Normally, people won't be able to see them after all."

"Uwahhhhhh!"

"Ahhhhhhh!"

The reason for the screams was due to the fact that the gang was seeing multiple yokais of all kinds right on Rikuo's shoulders just as he said those words.

"H-Huh?" Rikuo just noticed that they were there as well. "Who are you?!"

"Rikuo-kun!"

Rikuo quickly turned around and tried to hide the yokais behind him.

Kana looked at him in concern, "What are you doing? The rest of them are going ahead."

"Ah, sorry. I'm coming." Rikuo quickly told her, paying no mind to the running men. "You go on ahead."

"That was close." Rikuo heaved a sigh of relief, glancing at the yokais around him. "Guess Kana-chan can't see these guys since their Fear is not as strong as the yokais in the Main house."

"My deepest apologies, Young Master!" Tsurara bowed non-stop. "They have actually been following us for a while now, but I thought that they wouldn't do anything because-"

"We just had to follow upon hearing that the Young Master," One of the yokais spoke up and gestured to a tree nearby, "And Third Heir of the Nura clan is here!"

Rikun was sitting on the mentioned tree's branch, swinging one of his legs nonchalantly, just out of sight from Rikuo's friends. He had a playful smirk on.

Rikuo sighed and looked up at his brother.

_*Why are you following on this trip anyways?*_

_*Why not?*_

_*You are going to get found out*_

_*I'm a Nurarihyon, low chance of that happening.*_

Rikuo gave a deadpanned face as his brother continued smirking at him.

"But still, all of you should lay low!" Tsurara reprimanded the yokais. "Third Heir and Young Master came here for a relaxing trip, not to get found out by humans." She then shooed the disappointed yokais away.

_Relaxing trip?_

_*I could think of ways for us to rela-*_

A shoe went flying towards the tree's direction, shocking some of the yokais at the sudden attack.

_*Fufu, so violent.*_

Rikuo gritted his teeth with a major blush on his cheeks. It was rather infuriating that the shoe was caught expertly and thrown back to him in a mocking way.

"What are you doing, Nura-kun?!" Kiyotsugu shook his fist in Rikuo's direction. "Our destination is just ahead. I won't forgive you for delaying this exciting moment!"

"Sorry, sorry, Kiyojuji-san." Rikuo quickly wore his shoe, shot a glare at the tree and rushed to where all his friends had gathered.

Kiyotsugu huffed and gestured ahead. "Anyways, this is where the yokai at the warrior mansion will be at!"

The view was spectacular with the town in the center. The sea could be seen further ahead, reflecting the sunrays, giving it a sparkling sight.

"Wow!" Saori grinned, very impressed with the sight.

"This is such a great view!" Natsumi inhaled the air in excitement.

*_Anyways, what is with the hunting yokai stuff?_ * Rikuo heard Rikun asking through the their mind.

*_Kiyojuji-san received an E-mail from a girl, who's been haunted by a yokai at her house. She wanted Kiyojuji-san to hunt the yokai down as it was bothering her._*

*_Why him? Isn't he the only one who has yet to see a yokai?_*

*_Apparently there was a little staging going on there._* Rikuo sweatdropped, remembering that Kiyotsugu had told them that he basically lied about being able to hunt yokais to gain information on his website.

*_Weird human._*

Rikuo gave an awkward laugh at the unimpressed tone as they walked down a street, where a large mansion could be seen. A girl was leaning against the wall, perking up when she noticed the group heading towards her.

Kiyotsugu stepped forward, "Hello, you must be-"

"Are you Kiyotsugu-kun?" The girl rushed up to Rikuo, who blinked confusingly and quickly shook his head negatively. "Huh...? Then again, you don't seem that reliable." She noticed Kiyotsugu trying to get her attention. "Wait...you are Kiyotsugu-kun? With such curly hair...I'm getting worried."

"You got a problem with my hair?!"

She ignored the scowl and bowed slightly. "Anyways, I'm Suganuma Shinako. I'm the one who sent the E-mail. I don't know if you are able to help, but I shall keep my hopes high for now."

The group went a bit awkward at the dismissive tone.

"Come on in."

"Well, it seems the mansion is not that impressive at all." Kiyotsugu flipped his curly hair. "It's not even up to standard compared to Nura-kun's."

"Are you seriously having a petty grudge?" Saori stared in disbelief at Kiyotsugu.

_*...!*_

_*Rikun? What's-*_

"S**T**aY AwA**Y** **F**RoM Th**A**T gIR**L**."

Rikuo inhaled sharply and quickly turned around. Seeing nothing but a tree swaying gently against the wind, Rikuo looked around the surroundings cautiously.

_*Rikun, just now-*_

_*Heh, looks like something interesting is in this town after all.* _

Without any of the others noticing, Rikun jumped down from a nearby roof and landed between Rikuo and Tsurara, who was startled by the sudden appearance.

"I'm going to take a look around. Yuki-Onna."

"Y-Yes, Third Heir?"

"Make sure to guard Rikuo well."

"Understood!"

"The one who should be careful is you." Rikuo pursed his lips. "Yokais are weak during daytime, don't force yourself."

"He's worried for me, isn't that sweet?"

"You- Just be quiet and go, stupid Rikun!"

Rikun smirked and vanished just as Kana turned back and call for them to hurry in.

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

"And it all happened here in my room." Shinako led the group to a room where a man and a woman were sitting.

"Please excuse us for the intrusion." Kiyotsugu bowed at the two people.

The rest of them observed the room as Kiyotsugu introduced himself to the woman, who appeared to be Shinako's mother. The ceiling, the walls, the cabinets, paintings and more, all of which were decorated with tons of different shapes, sizes and types of talisman.

"This," Kiyotsugu gaped at the amount. "Is an impressive amount of talismans."

"Shinako," The mother frowned slightly. "You should have brought your friends at a later time. You know that the good priest have been coming here everyday to perform a purification."

"But that priest," Shinako frowned back. "Has not been doing anything useful. He's not doing anything."

"Shinako!" The mother reprimanded while the priest slumped slightly.

Paying no mind to either of them, Shinako walked towards a specific spot and gestured it to the squad. "It was right over here. It appeared last night too, looming over me." She grimaced. "It was a heavy feeling, making me unable to breath properly. It felt like it was just staring at me, waiting for something."

"So it was just staring at you?" Kiyotsugu prompted further while the others were slightly creeped out by the story.

She breathed out slightly and raised her right arm, which everyone just noticed that it was bandaged. Pulling off the bandage, gasps were heard at the bruises hidden by the bandages.

"It grabbed me hard enough to leave these."

_It touched her?!_

Rikuo narrowed his eyes in trepidation as the rest of the group panicked.

"Please!"

Shinako bowed her head. "I don't know what it will do next! And I'm...I'm afraid! Please protect me!"

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

_~Night~_

_Still...it sure is uncomfortable sleeping in a room like this._

Kana continued looking around as all the girls gathered around Shinako's room, preparing to sleep.

_And it's really cold here too for some reason!_

Kana shivered as Tsurara placed her futon nearby.

"Well, let's leave the protecting to the boys while we rest." Natsumi covered herself well. "Good night!"

_~Outside, near the room~_

"And we shall be using this to communicate should we be too far from each other."

Rikuo stared at the rather hideous doll of himself that Kiyotsugu gave him.

"It's a radio." Kiyotsugu explained, mistaking Rikuo's expression as confusion.

"Ah...I see."

Rikuo sighed as Kiyotsugu passed a similar doll to Jiro.

"We ought to be careful though." Kiyotsugu lectured the both of them. "The yokai that was attacking is apparently named Jami. From my research, it's a yokai with ill intent." Kiyotsugu pursed his lips. "The priest also mentioned that a lot of people in the area had actually been devoured by said yokai long ago."

"Um, Kiyojuji-san?"

Rikuo blinked at the strange look Kiyotsugu gave him, before it was gone in a second.

"What is it, Nura-kun?"

"Has it been attacking other places? We did only hear about Suganuma-san's story."

"You mean currently? Aside from this mansion, there are no other attacks. Now that you mentioned it, it would seem that she was the only one affected in this whole mansion."

_A yokai attacking a specific human...something weird is going on he-_

A silhouette shot past a hallway right behind Kiyotsugu, startling Rikuo.

"Hm? What's wrong, Nu-...Nura-kun?!" Kiyotsugu shouted when Rikuo suddenly rushed by him and into a hallway.

Surprised by the sudden action, both Kiyotsugu and Jiro followed him, not knowing what was going.

Rikuo turned a corner just in time to see the figure moved into another corner. Narrowing his eyes, Rikuo quickened his pace, trying to keep up. A dull pain started forming in his chest, making Rikuo bit his lip in worry. But something was really strange with the situation.

_It does not feel like the one from before._

**"STaY AwAY FRoM ThAT gIRL."**

_That one had a strong aura. But this one-_

Rikuo paused when the figure stopped and faced him. He widened his eyes when it jumped forward and started attacking him.

-_Feels strangely familiar!_

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

_~Somewhere else~_

Rikun was walking around nonchalantly. He looked around left and right before moving on, doing the same thing every so often.

"There doesn't seem to be any other yokais other than you all." He commented to the group of small yokais that had been following him non-stop since he left Rikuo.

"It's just mostly us around here, Third Heir." A snake-like yokai answered him. "This place is not suited for most yokais to stay here."

"Ho? Why is that?" Rikun stopped walking to focus on the conversation.

"Most of them ended up being slain by the strong one that lingers here...and for the past few years, others were forced to move due to the barriers being placed near that mansion."

"Barriers?"

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

"Nura-kun! Where did you go?!" Kiyotsugu ran blindly, slightly annoyed at the hallways that so many corners, causing him to lose sight of Rikuo.

He then heard a sound from the right.

"Nura-kun? Is that yo-"

"Go back to the girls, Kiyojuji-san!"

"H-Huh?" Kiyotsugu faltered.

"There's a yokai in the room there, go now!"

"A yokai in the girls room?!" Kiyotsugu gasped, and quickly made a U-turn, grabbing a confused Jiro along the way. "Let's hurry!"

It did not even occur to them to wonder how Rikuo knew there was a yokai in that room.

_~Meanwhile~_

Kana trembled in horror in her futon.

_It-It's here...!_

A human like figure with a lot of talisman on the face was roaming in the middle of the room. The figure stood still for a second and slowly turned to face Kana. Kana immediately turned around, trying her hardest to pretend to sleep despite her heart racing with fear. Her trembles got worse hearing the sound of a sword being unsheathed.

_My voice...won't come out! It's going to attack us! Someone-someone please come in and-!_

BANG

"Where is it?! Yokai!" Kiyotsugu and Jiro burst into the room.

"Kyahhh!" Kana finally screamed out, the intrusion shocked the fear out of her.

"What the-"

"Who's in the room?!"

"It's too dark to see!"

"W-What-" Shinako sat up, rubbing her eyes.

The figure slowly faded away.

There was a huge commotion as Saori punched Jiro for touching her breast after the light was on and Kiyotsugu accidentally pinning Natsumi down as he searched for yokais.

"Nura-kun, you liar! How could-"

"No!" Kana cut in before Kiyotsugu could continue. "There really was one in here!"

~With Rikuo~

SLASH

The creature dissipated into smoke. A paper with a strange symbol on it was seen fluttering down, before burning into ashes as it reached the floor.

Rikuo panted slightly, sheathing Nenekirimaru while looking around. He stared at the spot where the creature was. He patted his chest slightly, the burning feeling slowly ebbing away but not gone.

_Something weird is going on._

_*Definitely.*_

_*Rikun? What did you find?*_

_*Something interesting. It's getting late, Rikuo. Go and rest. We will talk about it tomorrow.*_

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

_~Living room of Shinako's house~_

_*Barriers?* _Rikuo furrowed his eyebrows, thanking Kana as she gave him one zabuton for him to sit comfortably.

_*Aside from the yokai that's roaming around, there seems to be something preventing other small yokais from entering the mansion, or anywhere near it.*_

_*Hm. Maybe the priest did something.* _Rikuo glanced at the priest as he began telling the story surrounding Jami.

_*...*_

"Why would the wife be jealous?" Kana tilted her head in confusion. "It's just a male servant?"

"Are you perhaps talking about BL?" Saori said.

"BL?" Kiyotsugu swiveled his head sharply to her. "What's that?!"

"It's boys love, meaning love between two boys" Natsumi said, amused when Kiyotsugu and Jiro gave a weird face at that. "It's more common than you think."

_*And there is one right in front of yo-*_

*RIKUN!*

"Young Master, are you all right?" Tsurara whispered, seeing Rikuo turning all red.

_*Aren't you glad that they are barely scratching the surface? Imagine it's a story about inc-*_

Everyone jumped when Rikuo suddenly banged his head and arms on the table.

"R-Rikuo-kun?!" Kana looked at him worriedly.

"What is it, Nura-kun?!"

"No..." Rikuo raised a hand, not lifting his head and ignoring the lingering laughter in his head. "Sorry, please continue with the story."

"Ahem...A large tsunami flooded the whole town. The servant drowned, having no way of escape the cage the wife had locked him in. Since then, there are reports of people seeing a lone wet figure walking along the town. And that is how the yokai, Jami, was born. It is said to be a yokai that attacks humans who had earned its resentment. In this area...there are still descendants from that family." The priest slowly finished his story.

Rikuo blinked, raising his head.

"W-Wait a minute," Kiyotsugu slammed his hands on the table. "That means-"

"Yes." The priest turned to Shinako. "Shinako-chan here is a direct descendant."

Shinako bit her lip.

Realization sunk into the children.

"So that's why she was attacked!"

"Yes, and the shrine were built to appease the yokai and other spirits."

Rikuo glanced at the mentioned shrine, where a part of it could be seen out of a window as Kiyotsugu continued to question the priest. He looked at the area near the top, where some markings could be seen. One moment it was some markings that he could not discern due to the distance, and the next moment-

Rikuo blinked once.

-The markings suddenly enlarged as though it was zoomed in. A strange symbol was craved onto the wood.

**A paper with a strange symbol on it was seen fluttering down, before burning into ashes as it reached the floor.**

Rikuo continued staring at the symbol, before he was startled when Shinako suddenly stood up and shouted.

"I had enough!"

"Shinako-chan..."

"Calming the yokais...as if it would work! You have already tried it for so many years! It does not work at all! Most of my family had already left!"

"I can't say anything about my power not being able to help. But sometimes, in the case that the resentment is too strong, it's hard to calm a spirit with so much anger." The priest sighed.

"Your family members who could not stand the pressure had left the town, for fear of the worse."

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

Everyone silently walked to the center of the town with Shinako leading the way. As they did, they saw some of the town's people, all of them acted strangely the moment they saw Shinako.

"Look, it's that Suganuma girl."

"I heard that she was possessed by Jami."

"Better don't get close to her, otherwise she would harm us as well!"

"What's with their problem?!" Saori frowned. "How obnoxious!"

"They are all acting as though Shinako-chan is a bad person." Natsumi pouted angrily.

_It's all because of Jami...we have to figure something out._

_*Isn't it weird that only that girl is targeted?*_

_*What do you mean, Rikun?*_

_*I can believe if Jami meant her harm due to some past. But why only her?*_

_*The priest already explained it, she's a direct descendant.*_

_*...Did her mother ever had such attacks on herself?*_

_*Eh?*_

_*That girl...she mentioned that the priest have been there for many years. Did her mother not receive any attacks?*_

_*From what I heard, no.*_

_*How strange. It's like getting revenge for no reason.*_

Rikuo tilted his head at that.

_*Why would you say that, Rikun? This yokai could just be vengeful due to being falsely accuse of something they did not do.*_

There was a short silence as Rikuo watched the girls comfort Shinako. He was surprised when Rikun started speaking again.

_*I would take out the whole family instead of just aiming at one.*_

_*...What?*_

_*Take out the whole family. If I were truly angry at whatever is happening, the whole family would bore my anger instead of just one individual. No point attacking one and letting another live if it's the family I'm angry at.*_

_*Suganuma-san is the end of her family line, attacking her would mean the end of her whole family. It's unreasonable to attack the others. That's why we are often targeted due to being Jii-chan's grandson.*_

_*Rikuo, do you even know why we were even targeted?*_

_*Huh? To end the line...right?*_

_*Yokais lived way longer than humans. How old do you think Jiji is? There's still time to continue the line, however barbaric the thought is.*_

Rikuo smiled awkwardly at the disgust heard in Rikun's voice.

_*But the main reason is because none dared to challenge Jiji and Oyaji head on. That's why we are targeted. It's for satisfaction. That's why, if I am angry at a family, I would destroy the whole family, like we did with the Kyuso clan.*_

_*That's a lot of unnecessary killing.*_

_*You are thinking way too human, Rikuo.*_

_*What do you mean by-*_

"Let's head to the beach!" Kiyotsugu pumped his fist in the air.

"W-What? What's with you?" Saori gaped at the sudden declaration.

"No point moping around. We still need to think of a plan to catch Jami! A change of scenery would be good for us!"

"I can't believe those words are coming out of your mouth!" Natsumi was in extreme awe.

"As expected of our leader!" Saori agreed.

"Well, as least everyone cheered up." Rikuo rubbed his head.

_*Beach?*_

_*Kiyojuji-san was informed that there's a beach here, it's mainly the reason why Torii-san and Maki-san decided to join us.*_

_*But...*_

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

When they arrived at their destination, everyone was shocked.

_*I don't recall seeing a beach that humans can swim about while I was walking around the town.*_

"Fishing boats...?" Saori looked at all the boats with despair.

"We can't go swimming here!" Natsumi cried.

"Oh no! I didn't know this town was famous for their crabs! Their sea is used for fishing not swimming!"

"Well, it's too bad. We brought our swimsuits and all." Kana told Rikuo and Tsurara as Saori and Natsumi exploded on Kiyotsugu for getting the wrong information. Jiro stood at a side, a disappointed aura surrounding him at not being able to see Tsurara in a bathing suit.

"To think that we were even impressed by you for a second!"

"Why is it always like that with you?!"

A small chuckle cut in, stopping the argument.

"Thank you. I feel better now." Shinako gave a smile small.

"Huh? Why? Even though this idiot brought you all the way down here for nothing?" Saori shook Kiyotsugu violently.

"Yes...just having everyone coming together with me, is more than enough." Shinako raised her head; tears could be seen at the corner of her eyes. "Everyone in town doesn't think much about the house that held Jami...so simply having friends like all of you here, is more than enough for me."

She bowed to all of them. "Truly...thank you so much for coming here."

"Having everyone shun her due to something she can't control." Tsurara pressed a hand on her mouth. "She had a really hard time. No wonder she acted the way she did when she met us."

"We really didn't do much for you anyways." Saori smiled awkwardly, releasing Kiyotsugu after hearing such a heartfelt gratitude.

"That's right! We still need to catch Jami!"

"You are still saying that?!"

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

The children turned around, coming to face the people that Rikuo had bumped into before.

"You don't want to get too close to the possessed girl, otherwise something bad will happened to you too." Big brother strode towards them with a smug look.

"Who-who are these people?" Jiro stepped backwards, intimidated by the group approaching them.

"Brokers..." Shinako clenched her hands. "They buy houses for cheap prices whenever there's the rumor of Jami appearing and knock them down. They have been trying to buy our house for a while."

"You better get of here before bad things start to happen to you." One of the men made a shooing motion.

"That's right," Big brother smirked. "You will-Gek!"

Rikuo twitched as Big brother gave a horrified look upon seeing him.

"B-Big brother?!" All the men shouted in surprise when the man quickly turned around and dashed off.

"Shut up! That's enough for now! We are leaving!"

Not knowing what was going on, the children watched as the men followed their leader blindly.

"Why do they look so scared all of a sudden?" Natsumi pressed a finger to her cheek.

Meanwhile, the Young Master of the Nura clan frowned as they continued to watch the group running further away.

_Brokers...?_

**"They have been trying to buy our house for a while."**

**A paper with a strange symbol on it was seen fluttering down.**

**_*Aside from the yokai that's roaming around, there seems to be something preventing other small yokais from entering the mansion, or anywhere near it.*_**

**"Shinako-chan here is a direct descendant."**

**"You mean currently? Aside from this mansion, there are no other attacks."**

**A strange symbol was craved onto the wood.**

_**...Feels strangely familiar!**_

**"STaY AwAY FRoM ThAT gIRL."**

**_*You are thinking way too human, Rikuo.*_**

"So that's why..."

"Young Master?" Tsurara stepped forward, hearing that whisper.

"Tsurara, prepare yourself for tonight."

_*Rikuo?*_

"We are going to expose the real Jami tonight."

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

"Those people are probably the ones causing the rumors!" Saori banged the table. "They are probably the ones even causing the whole Jami thing. Threatening us and Shinako-san like that!"

"Causing it?" Jiro widened his eyes. "Is that even possible?"

"Some people would take advantage of things like that." Saori lifted a finger. "They might even be Jami, telling him to attack houses just so they could buy them."

"Using yokais to do their dirty work...very interesting." Kiyotsugu pondered at the fact.

"I...do not think it's possible to use spirits, let alone yokais, this way." The priest said, placing a hand over his mouth in thought.

Brown eyes glinted.

"Priest!"

"Yes?"

"Isn't there a way to protect Suganuma-san better?" Rikuo pushed on, ignoring how the others were looking at him in surprise. "There's has to be a way for you to do so!"

"Well..."

Kiyotsugu cleared his throat, "It's no use. While your enthusiasm is highly appreciated, Nura-kun, but as Suganuma-san stated when we came here, no chants or seals have been working."

"Doesn't that mean that those brokers could really be behind this?" Saori frowned.

"But she's injured in her room. Surely someone would have seen intruders aside from her." Jiro reminded.

"But if those brokers are really the culprits..." Kana mused.

Tsurara and Rikuo shared a look before Tsurara raised her hand for attention. "Maybe...we should leave this to the police?"

"I suppose...there's no other way."

"Eh?" Everyone looked at the priest as he reached inside his clothes.

"Use this."

All of them stared at the four talismans the priest had placed on the table.

"Honestly, I didn't want to use it as this is really a powerful barrier. But if it is to protect Shinako-chan… These will act as gods in four direction." He pointed to the characters of 'North', 'South', 'East', and 'West' at the bottom of the talismans. "Attach them on all four sides of your room and nothing can get in or out. However," The priest adjusted his glasses. "Only Shinako-chan will be allowed to enter the room and the doors cannot be open till morning."

"You can't open it under any circumstances."

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

_~Night~_

Shinako lay in her futon alone in her room, looking at the talismans that were placed at the middle of each wall, perpendicular to each other. Every once in a while, she would glance at it, closing her eyes to get some sleep, only to open them again to take another look.

_Would it even work?_

She took another look at the talismans. She then turned on her side, eyes not leaving the talismans. Ten minutes had past. Her eyes felt strained, and yet she dared not to close them.

_Sleeping alone in this room is just too daunting. But I can't leave this room; the barriers won't work if I left._

She looked at the talisman again and noticed something strange with it.

_Black spots? No...It looked like it was burned. Was it there earlier?_

She rubbed her eyes to confirm it, only to scream in horror as hands and legs started appearing from the talisman.

"Kyahhhhh!" She tossed the blankets away, running to the doors and panicked when it was sealed shut despite her attempts to pry it open.

_Why won't it open?! Why? Why?! _

Just then a figure appeared behind her. Shinako screamed, knowing she was going to die as the figure started unsheathing its sword.

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

"How are things going on your side, Jiro-kun?" Kiyotsugu spoke into his doll as he walked around the place.

"_Oikawa-san is safe and sound!_"

"Not just Oikawa-kun! It's all the girls! Also-" Kiyotsugu shivered slightly, rubbing his eyes a little. "We need to...uwahh~ make sure everything is fine. Don't sleep, Jiro-kun." He said, hearing Jiro yawn at the same time as he did.

"_I-I'm not- uwahhh~ It's cold..._"

Kiyotsugu rubbed his eyes. It was indeed cold tonight. It was not that cold yesterday.

"Anyways, Nura-kun, can you hear me?"

"_..._"

Kiyotsugu frowned sleepily. "Nura-kun, you better not be sleeping." Hearing no response, Kiyotsugu was about to scold when a yawn cut him off. "Haaa...Jiro-kun, could you go see where Nura-kun is? He was supposed to be stationed near your place."

"..."

"Oi, Jiro-" Another yawn came, and this time it made him hard to keep his eyes opened. "Sleepy..."

He gave one more yawn, shivering as he did. He remembered seeing something blue, before his vision dropped to the floor. Everything went black as his body hit the floor.

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

_~With the girls~_

Kana stared at the ceiling, feeling restless. She then sat up slightly.

"I don't really think leaving Shinako-san alone in the room is safe for her. Maybe we could stay with her and-ah," She blinked, seeing the rest of the girls had already falling asleep. "So fast..."

She was about to do the same when something outside caught her attention.

She gasped.

A silhouette with a very obvious long hair was walking past.

For a moment, she was stunned, simply watching the figure walked past until it was out of sight. She quickly snapped out of it, knowing only one person that could have such a long hair.

"Wa-wait a moment!" She quickly got up. "Why are you-"

"Noroi no Fubuki, Yukiyama-goroshi!"

Ice covered all over Kana's side before she fell down, completely asleep.

Tsurara placed her properly, making sure to cover her well to ensure that coldness would not harm her body.

"That was so close," Tsurara sighed. "Does Third Heir have to walk this way knowing that Young Master's friends are here?"

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

Shinako frantically threw herself away from the figure in an attempt to get away, only to be surrounded by the creatures that came out from the talismans. She could only shut her eyes, covering her face with her arms feebly in attempt to protect herself as the creatures threw themselves at her.

_I'm going to die!_

Hearing a thud, she peeked curiously and widened her eyes in surprise as the creatures fell left and right. Another creature jumping at her had her screaming out again, only for it to be hacked down as the figure moved in front of her.

"What-what-" She looked at the figure, the talisman fluttering around their face at their movement as they continued slashing at the creatures until none was left.

_It saved me...? But why?_

A door fell as it was slashed through, revealing a familiar form.

The figure wasted no time rushing towards it and swung its sword.

CLING

"Whoa there." Rikun held Nenekirimaru and swung it, redirecting the attack to the side before jumping back to avoid further confrontation. "I'm not your enemy."

The figure paused.

Rikun glanced at the girl behind the figure. "If you want to know the truth, follow me."

"The...truth?"

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

_~At a place near the mansion~_

"Gyahahaha. Soon this land will be ours." A group of men in suits gathered around a map. "It's a good thing this town believes in superstitions."

"My stomach aches at the thought of them believing things like yokais!" One man laughed, holding his stomach. "What fools!"

"Eh?" Big brother was also there, blinking in confusion. "It's not real? Even Jami is fake?"

"Of course it is fake!" Another man placed an arm on Big brother's shoulder. "I forget that you can be quite an empty head at times, Hasebe. Weren't you and your group the ones that don't believe in yokais in the first place?"

"But..." Hasebe shivered, remembering the kid that had those horrifying things on his shoulders from before.

"All of this was orchestrated so we could easily get this land easily. Also, the only Jami that appears in town...is the shikigami we had sent out." The man grinned to one side. "Isn't that right? Priest."

The priest stood there, smirking for all his worth.

"It's time to end the charades. Those pesky kids are getting too nosy for their own good. We don't want police to come and search the place here." The priest sat down in the middle of the group. "Still, I never thought what little I had learned about shikigamis in Kyoto would be so useful. If everything goes smoothly..."

"As stated, we will split 70:30 to you. Getting all those houses for cheap prices is worth it at the end. Only this mansion is left for us to claim. Once it does, this land is as good as ours."

"Yes. Due to ancient past, the Suganuma family held most ground when it comes to this land. When they are gone, you can use this land anyway you wish." The priest chuckled. "Since they are not willing to sell the house, underhanded methods will have to come to play. Right now, the daughter will be experiencing the worse trauma of her life, it will be enough to leave her shivering and unable to speak for the rest of her life. I even sealed her doors shut to prevent her escape."

"And her mother will have no choice but to move them out because of the evil in the house." The man laughed. "They would never know that you are the evil one here, priest."

"Oh no, that would be you and your construction company."

Hasebe rubbed his head as the two men laughed at their success. Hearing something, he turned around and shouted in alarm. "Bo-Boss!"

"What is–ack!" Everyone turned and react in horror.

Shinako was standing at the door, staring at them with dark eyes.

"Shinako-chan..." The priest came forward, nervously rubbing his hands together. "What are you doing outside the barrier? This is no good, you have to go back-"

"Stay away!" Shinako swiped a hand at him. "Now that I think about it, everything went downhill the moment you appeared at our house. It was because of you! You were working with them all along!"

The priest sighed. "I didn't want it to come to this, you left me with no choice." He gave a scowl. "Get her."

"Right." All the men cracked their knuckles. "Now, just be a good girl and-"

"How ridiculous."

"Wha-!" The men stopped and looked around, trying to find the voice.

"A low-life priest going around scaring humans who won't listen. Going around shouting that Jami is after them, when in fact you are the ones using shikigamis to do your dirty work. "

"Who's there! Show yourself!"

"If Jami is a yokai with ill intent," The voice chuckled. "The ill intent will be from humans such as yourself, just a bunch of apes waving their arms around in tantrum when they don't get what they want."

"Who are you calling apes?! You coward! Show yourself if you think you are so-"

A sword slips below Hasebe's chin, cutting off whatever he was saying. Hasebe froze in terror as Rikun brought his weapon closer his neck.

"What the-"

"Where did he come from?!"

"Kill him!"

Using his leg to kick Hasebe aside, Rikun held Nenekirimaru with both hands and proceeded to slice through the pillar nearby. His red eyes gleamed through the dust as the pillar fell to the ground.

"He sliced through the pillar!"

"Red...red! Demon!"

"It's real yokais! Run!"

"Get a hold of yourselves!" The priest tried to stop the men, to no avail. He cursed and turned back to Rikun. "A yokai? Well, take this! This is my Keikain style of shikiga-!"

All the talismans were sliced before it could even leave the priest's hand. The figure protecting Shinako held its sword horizontally, getting ready for another attack.

"There's one more of you?!"

"By the way," Rikun told the priest, pointing a finger at the figure. "This is the real Jami that kept appearing in town."

"What?!"

"This is thanks, for the one treated unfairly due to your schemes." Rikun took out a sakazuki cup. "Ougi Meikyo Shisui, Sakura!"

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

The three of them stood outside, watching the flames burning down the hideout the men had been using.

Shinako turned to face Jami, who merely looked at the flames blankly.

"Why..."

Jami turned his head slightly to face Shinako.

"Why did you protect me?" Shinako cautiously stepped closer. "Don't you hate our family? Because of what happened..."

Jami said nothing, only watching her.

"...You may be the descendant of the wife who killed him," Rikun said. "But you are also the descendant of the one who he serves."

Shinako widened her eyes, looking at Jami with a new realization.

"He was simply serving his master, watching over your family for years."

Rikun watched as Shinako went closer, thanking Jami for everything that he had done for the family.

"Although, I am curious how you know about all this." Rikun looked behind him. "Everything happened as you said, Rikuo."

Rikuo smiled, standing there with his back against Rikun's, making sure Shinako would not be able to see him.

"It's all thanks to you, Rikun." Rikuo continued, hearing the confused hum. "You were right. I was thinking way too human. A yokai attacking for revenge would not care for a single individual, so only a human would be behind this. The thing that attacked me felt similar to Keikain-san's shikigamis, and the symbol on it was the same on the shrines, which acts as a barrier. That's when the priest became very suspicious. I doubt any technique used by the Keikains would be useless as the priest says with all the amount of talisman present."

"And that's why you pressed for further protection and told Yuki-Onna to say those words, knowing he will panic at the thought of police poking into the situation."

Rikuo carefully peeked behind Rikun, smiling as Jami finally received the thanks after all the years. "I spoke to Suganuma's mother before we begun the whole plan. She had left a will, stating that the mansion will be left to her one and only daughter should anything happen to her. That's why they didn't bother going after the mother. And, the reason for not selling the house..."

"Thank you," Shinako smiled gratefully, tears slipping down her cheeks. "We won't have to sell the house now. It was my last memory of my father. Thank you so much for protecting our family for all these years."

Jami stood there as Shinako sobbed, happy that all the fears, the terrors, the nightmares she had suffered through the years, was finally over.

He raised his head to the sky, his shoulder dropped just a tiny bit. If those talismans were not covering his face, Jami was certain that the party present would have known.

When he died, he regretted. Regretted not being able to protect his master. So he endured years after years, hovering child after child. He waited and waited, doing what he promised to do for his master...and finally...

Tears streamed down his cheeks, hidden beneath the curtain of talismans.

**"Thank you so much for protecting our family for all these years."**

He had protected him. Just as he promised.

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

Jami stood at one side silently, moving his head slightly as Shinako left the place, leaving only the yokais there.

"That's some impressive loyalty you have there."

Jami turned to Rikun. "I do not know you. The reason of you helping..."

"I am the Third Heir of the Nura clan, Nura Rikun."

"Nura...clan?" Jami jerked a little. "What's an infamous clan doing at a place like this?"

Rikun smirked. "Believe it or not, it was merely coincidence." He then stepped to one side, revealing Rikuo. "The reason is simply because you were in the middle of my brother's little adventure."

"Brother...?"

Rikuo nodded, "Nura Rikuo. Young master of the Nura clan." He went towards Jami, stopping just in front of him. "Jami, we are still young." He ignored the indignant sound coming from Rikun. "So, right now we are gathering our own Night Parade of a Hundred Demons. To be the masters of demons, goblins and ghosts someday."

Rikun stood next to his brother. "And we want yokais like you to be in our parade."

Rikun pulled out a large sakazuki cup, holding it on the right side. Rikuo reached out as well, gripping the other side. Both of them grinned at Jami while showing the cup to him.

"Will you exchange sakazuki with us?"

Jami stared at the two of them. As he continued staring, both brothers' faces began blurring into a single face.

**"I like you very much. Come join me."**

With a deep breath, Jami reached a hand towards them.

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

_~The next day~_

"In the end, there were no yokais after all." Kiyotsugu sighed. "Well, at least it has been all resolved. The police will be able to handle everything."

"Those brokers deserved it, scamming so many people." Saori adjusted her bag. "At least Shinako-san seemed happy with it."

"And she gave so many crabs to us as thanks!" Jiro struggled with the boxes filled with live crabs.

"Legs!" Rikuo panicked. "Legs are coming out, Shima-san!"

"Well, they must have run away once they heard of us coming to hunt them down!" Kiyotsugu nodded to himself.

"You were sleeping when you were suppose to be on watch." Natsumi deadpanned.

Kiyotsugu flinched. "We-well," He slumped, knowing he had no excuse. "I got all tired of a sudden, it must have been the coldness from last night."

"Me too..." Kana bit her lips. "I got sleepy the moment it was cold..." She gulped. "Could it be...a yokai?!"

Rikuo pretended not to hear a thing while Tsurara was snickering at the reactions.

"Anyways," Saori waved the whole thing off. "It was such a waste that Yura-chan couldn't come with us."

"That's right. The beautiful Onmyoji should have been with us, dealing with yokais and all." Natsumi turned to Kiyotsugu for answers.

"I could not get a hold of her," Kiyotsugu sighed. "She haven't been attending school for the past few days too."

_*I hope she is all right...* _Rikuo gave a worried look.

_*...*_

* * *

_**With a new addition**_

* * *

_~Somewhere~_

Harsh panting was heard. It was loud in such an isolated place. At the middle of the place, stood a blindfolded Yura with Rentei merged on her left hand.

"Yura MAX!"

A blast of water shot out of the cannon.

Yura gritted her teeth.

"Not enough."

~To Be Continued~

* * *

_Whew~ It was such a shame that I can't continue, this chapter was suppose to go on until…well until someone appears. But I realized that if I do that, I won't be able to end it. *Sweatdrops* I am looking forward to writing the next chapter! (I'm really excited to write it!)_

_It was a huge debate to decide if I wanted this Jami story to happen here. But I decided to include it, as something important had happened here. What was it? Well…it shall be a secret till further chapters. *Smiles*_

_Things to note:_

_Futon - A__ Japanese traditional style of bedding._

_zabuton__ \- __ A Japanese cushion__for sitting._

_Barbaric thought from Rikun – Losing a child would be painful to anyone, be it yokai or human. Simply thinking about being able to continue the line with no regards of losing a child is disgusting_

_Noroi no Fubuki, Yukiyama-goroshi__ \- __A technique where Tsurara blows out cold air which makes her target sleepy._

_Shikigami – A term used for a kind of spirit, summoned by onmyojis_

_Sakazuki – A ritual of exchanging sake cup to pledge loyalty_

_Onmyoji – A title for human who are able to use spiritual powers to fight yokais_

**_Omake:_**

**"_But I remember seeing him though…" Kana held her face. "I'm sure of it!"_**

**_Rikuo had a bad feeling about that. "…See who?" He reluctantly asked her._**

**"_The white-black hair yokai."_**

**_Rikuo immediately sent a glare towards the trees near them._**

**_*Don't look at me like that. I thought that everyone was asleep.__*_**

**_*You couldn't have gone another way?!*_**

**_*That way was the fastest towards the girl's room. Had I taken another route, we would have missed those low-life's conversation.*_**

**_*Still…*_**

**"_Rikuo-kun?"_**

**"_Wh-What?" Rikuo quickly turned his attention back to Kana. "What is it?"_**

**"_Are you," Kana fidgeted. "Are you sure you are not friends with him?"_**

**"_EH?!" Rikuo froze._**

**"_It's just that," Kana tugged her hair behind her ear. "He really does always appear wherever you are. So…" Receiving a passionate shaking of the head, Kana sweated at the strong reply. "I guess it's just coincidence."_**

**_*That's right, we are not friends at all. We are more than that~ So much more that we will soon-*_**

**_Everyone jumped in shock-surprise when a red-face Rikuo threw one of his shoes at a tree all of a sudden._**

_That's all folks! Do leave a review behind~_


End file.
